Letter, in Arabic and English, informing Pelly that the bearer of the letter, Abdool Assis Ben Assass [Abdul Aziz bin Aziz], will be his guide into the interior of Nejd if Pelly is still willing to employ him.1 folio
A volume of letters sent outwards. Most of the correspondence is from Nicholas Hankey Smith, Resident at Bushire, mainly to various company officials in India or elsewhere in the Gulf and surrounding regions. Correspondence is also frequently sent to Jaffer Ali Khan [Ja‘afar ‘Alī Khān], the Resident's native agent at Shiraz, along with various other Persian officials. From July 1808, correspondence is sent out by William Bruce, who becomes Acting Resident following the departure of Nicholas Hankey Smith. The volume also contains some letters inwards, mainly as enclosures to letters outward.The subject matter of the correspondence is the administration of the Bushire Residency, company trade and political matters in the Gulf. French diplomatic activity, and plans to advance on British India is also a frequent topic in the correspondence.The following abbreviations have been used:HCC - Honourable Company's CruizerHMS - His Majesty's Ship2 volumes, 314 items (212 folios)This was once a single volume that has since been split into two parts.Part 1: ff.1-96Part 2: ff.97-1942 volumes in one slipcaseFoliation: The foliation sequence runs through two volumes as a continuous sequence. It commences at the title page of volume one and terminates at the last folio of volume two; these numbers are written in pencil, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio.The file contains the following foliation corrections: 1 is followed by 1A; 11 is followed by 11A; 117 is followed by 117A; 193 is followed by 193A.Pagination: An original pagination sequence also runs through both volumes between ff 1-194; these numbers are written in ink, and are located in the top outermost corner of each page. The pagination is intermittent in places as numbers have been lost as a result of damage to the folios.Condition: The volumes have suffered from extensive pest damage resulting in the loss of a significant amount of text, and as a result the content can be difficult to read in places.
The file consists of miscellaneous official and demi-official correspondence relating to the outbreak of World War One and its impact on Bahrain (which is generally referred to in the papers as Bahrein). Most of the correspondence dates from 1914.The papers largely consist of correspondence from the Political Agent, Bahrain and the Political Resident in the Persian Gulf, but also includes correspondence in Arabic and English between Sheikh Isa bin Ali Al Khalifa [Sheikh ‘Īsá bin ‘Alī Āl Khalīfah], Ruler of Bahrain and the Political Agent. The papers include regular reports by the Political Agent on general conditions in Bahrain. Specific topics include: proposed increase in Agency guard, June 1914; proposed regulations covering foodstuffs, pearls and security [1914]; Turkey, and the possibility of Turkish support for Bin Saud [‘Abd al-‘Azīz bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān bin Fayṣal Āl Sa‘ūd (Ibn Sa‘ūd)], July 1914; the pearl trade, August 1914; prohibition of export of foodstuffs, August 1914; food prices, August, October 1914; effect on customs receipts, September 1914; problems caused by unemployed Kurds and Basris in Bahrain, September - October 1914; distress among pearl divers, September 1914; currency issues, October 1914; rumours of German ships in the Persian Gulf, October 1914; the services rendered by Sheikh Abdullah [Sheikh ‘Abdullāh bin ‘Īsá Āl Khalīfah] to the British, the statement that he had been the moving spirit behind the donation of 9600 rupees by Sheikh Isa's family to British charitable war funds, and the recommendation that he receive an honour, November 1914; and hardship caused by the infrequent arrival of mails, March 1917.1 file (81 folios)The papers are arranged in chronological order from the front to the rear of the file.Foliation: the foliation sequence commences at 1A on the front cover and terminates at 81 on the back cover. The numbers are written in pencil and appear in the top right hand corner of the recto page of each folio. Foliation anomalies: ff. 1A, 1B; ff. 16A, 16B; ff. 78A, 78B, 78C, 78D, 78E. In some places the foliation system has numbered versos as well as rectos, with the result that folios 35, 41, 49 and 63 are missing from the recto pages. The following folio needs to be folded out to be read: 78E.
This file consists of letters written and received by James Felix Jones, Political Resident in the Persian Gulf, Bushire. Aside from Jones, the two most prominent correspondents are Henry Lacon Anderson, Secretary to the Government of Bombay, and Commodore Griffith Jenkins, Commander of the Indian Naval Squadron in the Persian Gulf. Other correspondents include: Henry Young, Chief Secretary to the Government of Bombay; Cecil Beadon, Secretary to the Government of India, Fort William; and George Frederick Edmonstone, Secretary to the Government of India, Allahabad.The two main subjects of this file are the condition of the naval station at Bassidore [Bāsaʻīdū] and Britain's assumption of the sovereignty of India. The letters received from Griffith Jenkins are primarily concerned with the status of the naval station at Bassidore. In one of his letters to Jones (ff 5-8), dated 18 March 1858, Griffith Jenkins remarks on the total inefficiency of the naval establishment at Bassidore and solicits Jones's aid in presenting this issue to the Government so that arrangements can be made for its repair. The file includes a letter to Griffith Jenkins from a committee which has been appointed to report on the condition of the public buildings at Bassidore. This letter (ff 28-33), dated 18 March 1859, submits the committee's report on the condition of the port, the water tanks, the storehouses, the houses for liberated slaves, the smithy, the hospital and the sepoys' quarters at Bassidore.In his letters to Henry Lacon Anderson, Jones discusses the distribution of the ships of the Indian Naval Squadron and expresses his opinion on whether it is advisable for British subjects to engage in pearl fishing in the Persian Gulf.Jones's correspondence with Henry Young concerns the dissemination throughout the Gulf of copies of Her Majesty's proclamation on Britain's assumption of the sovereignty of India. Included with the received letters from India are printed extracts from the Government of India Act (1858) (ff 54-62), as well as translations of the aforementioned proclamation in Persian (handwritten, ff 43-46), Arabic (printed, f 48) and English (printed, ff 63-64).Further items on this subject include letters, both in Arabic (it is not clear whether the letters in Arabic are originals or transcriptions) and in English, from the Imam of Muscat, Sayyid Thuwaynī bin Sa‘id Āl Bū Sa‘īd, to Felix Jones (see ff 74-77 and f 80), in which Jones is informed that Her Majesty's assumption of the sovereignty of India was marked with the decoration and illumination of Muscat for three successive nights. In addition, there is a copy of a letter to the Resident which is written in Persian (ff 78v-79, name of correspondent unclear). These items are followed by translated purports of letters from the British Agents at Muscat and Sharjah (Khojeh Hiskale and Hajee Yacoob – see f 81 and ff 84-85 respectively), which convey the acknowledgements of the Imam of Muscat and other local rulers.1 volume (94 folios)For the most part, the letters in this file have been arranged in chronological order, proceeding from 25 February 1858 to 24 December 1859.Foliation: This file has a foliation sequence, which is written in pencil, in the top right corner of the recto of each folio. It begins on the first folio of writing, on number 1, and ends on the final folio before the back cover, on number 96. This is the sequence that has been used to reference items within the file.
The majority of correspondence in the file consists of miscellaneous letters and instructions, with enclosures, in Arabic and English, between 9 February 1884 to 24 February 1914, from the Political Residency in the Persian Gulf at Bushire and ‘Abd al-Qāsim, Khān Bahādur ‘Abd al-Laṭīf bin ‘Abd al-Raḥmān and ‘Īsá bin ‘Abd al-Laṭīf, Residency Agents on the Trucial Coast at Sharjah. There are also letters from Messrs A & T J Malcolm & Company (f. 9) and the Residency Agent at Lingah (f. 49). Enclosures typically include copies and originals of letters to and from various Persian Gulf rulers (for example, ff. 69, 70-77) and from British native agents at Bahrain and Lingah (for example, f. 151). Also included within the file are copies of responses from the Residency Agent to the Political Residency (for example, f. 67) and list of claims of various residents of Abu Dhabi (ff. 78-87).The Arabic and Persian text of the letters is handwritten and appears on the left hand of the folio, while the English text occasionally appears typed (for example, ff. 191-192). Some letters have strips of paper attached to them indicating the subject of the letter (for example, ff. 141-144), while on the recto side of some folios the subject of the letter is written in Arabic in pencil or pen (for example, f. 26v). The letters are numbered according to the year, for example, ‘No 389 of 1886’ (f. 107), although some letters appear unnumbered (for example, f. 171).The correspondence within the file deals generally with commercial and consular matters and the relations of the rulers of the Trucial Coast shaikhdoms with one another and the British. Subjects covered within the file include: the islands of Dalmā, Sīrī, Sir Bu Neir [Ṣīr Bū Nu‘ayr] and Abū Mūsá and red oxide mines; the status and claims of British Indian subjects (
banyans) in the Persian Gulf; pearl diving matters and cases of absconding divers; relations between Aḥmad bin ‘Abdullāh Āl Mu‘allā, the ruler of Umm al-Qaywayn, and his son Muḥammad; the transport of armed men and munitions by sea, and the preservation of maritime peace; relations between Shaikh Zāyid bin Kahlīfah Āl Nahyān of Abu Dhabi and Shaikh Jāsim bin Muḥammad Āl Thānī of Qatar; attack on an al-Wakrah boat and correspondence from ‘Alī bin Rāshid, the shaikh of al-Wakrah; various slavery cases, including one related to the shaikhs of Abu Dhabi and Qatar; relations between Shaikh Zāyid and al-Qubaysāt, al-Manāṣīr and Banī Hājir tribes; relations between Oman and Persia vis-à-vis the Trucial Coast; and a breach of the maritime peace by the people of al-Ḥamrīyah against ports on the Persian littoral of the Gulf.1 file (241 folios)Foliation: The foliation numbers are circled in pencil, in the top right corner of the recto of each folio. They begin on the front cover, on number 1, and end on the inside of the back cover, on number 241. Foliation errors: f. 78 is followed by f. 78A; no f. 211.
This file is divided into two sections. The first section (folios 2-21) consists of fourteen letters from Bushire to Tehran, two letters from Bushire to Baghdad and two letters from Tehran to Bushire. The letters from Bushire are written by Arnold Burrowes Kemball, Resident in the Persian Gulf, to one of the following: His Excellency Colonel Justin Sheil CB, Her Majesty's Minister Plenipotentiary and Envoy Extraordinary at the Court of Persia, Tehran; William Taylour Thomson, Her Majesty's Chargé d'Affaires at the Court of Persia, Tehran; Colonel Henry Creswicke Rawlinson, Political Agent in Turkish Arabia, Baghdad. In addition, there are two letters from William Taylour Thomson to Arnold Burrowes Kemball. Subjects covered in the first section include: British relations with the Persian Government; the state of affairs in Tangestān and Bandar-e 'Abbās; the retrieval of consignments of indigo, which formed part of the plundered cargo of the
Centaur. The second section (folios 24-59) consists of fourteen letters from Commodore George Robinson, Commander of the Persian Gulf Squadron, to Kemball and eight letters addressed by Kemball to Robinson. Many of Robinson's letters include enclosed copies of letters from various officers of the Naval Squadron (namely Lieutenants James Tronson, Robert Anstice Stradling, Charles Golding Constable and David Rose Dakers), which include not only accounts of duties carried out in the lower end of the Gulf but also reports of intelligence received from the native agents at Sharjah and Bandar-e Lengeh respectively. Subjects covered include: attempts made by Faisal bin Turki bin Abdullah Āl Sa‘ūd, ruler of the Second Saudi State, to obtain a tribute from the Governor of Muscat, Sayyid Thuwaynī bin Sa‘id al-Sa‘id, for the Al-Bāṭinah coast; the various duties carried out by officers of the Squadron, such as seizing boats that have imported slaves into ports along the Arab coast.1 volume, 39 items (60 folios)For the most part, the letters within the two divided sections proceed in chronological order, although there are several exceptions. The first section ranges in date from 6 January to 2 December 1853 while the second section ranges in date from 22 March to 8 November 1853.Pagination: There is an original pagination sequence which is written in ink, in the top right corners of the rectos and in the top left corners of the versos. The sequence is consistent, although not all of the pages have been paginated.Foliation: There is a foliation sequence, which is written in pencil, in the top right corner of the recto of each folio. This sequence begins on the third folio after the front cover, on number 1A, and ends on the inside of the back cover, on number 62. It should be noted that the sequence begins on f 1A and is followed by f 1B and f 2. This is the sequence used by this catalogue to reference items within this file.
This file contains correspondence discussing the concerns of British officials regarding the movement of Persian Government officials in the Gulf and their supposed attempts to challenge British power in the region.The movements of Haji Ahmed Khan (also given as Hajee Ahmed Khan and Hajee Ahmed bin Mohamad Ali), the Governor of Bushire, are discussed in detail throughout the file and copies of some of his correspondence with local rulers and the British are contained in the file.The file also contains letters in Arabic (with English translations) from British agents in Lingah [Bandar-e Lengeh] and Sharjah that were sent to the Political Resident in Bushire and correspondence between the Political Resident and the following local rulers:Zayed bin Khaleefah [Khalifa], Chief of Aboothabee [Abu Dhabi]Rashid bin Huamid, Chief of AjmanHumaid bin Abdullah bin Sultan, Chief of Ras El Khaymah [Ras Al Khaimah]Ahmad bin Abdullah, Chief of Ummal Kaiwain [Umm Al Quwain]Rashed [Rashid] bin Maktoum, Chief of Debay [Dubai]1 volume (162 folios)The file is arranged chronologically, from the earliest letter in the file at the front to the most recent letter in the file at the back.Condition: a bound volume.Foliation: The file's foliation sequence commences at the first folio and terminates at the last folio; these numbers are written in pencil, and are located in the top right corner of the recto side of each folio. The file contains the following foliation errors: 1, and 1A; 28, and 28A; 91, and 91A.Pagination: A pagination sequence is also present between ff 2-160; these numbers are written in blue/red crayon, and are located in the top outermost corner of each page.
This file contains letters and enclosures inwards from William Newnham, Secretary to the Governor of Bombay, to Captain Ephraim Gerrish Stannus, Political Resident in the Persian Gulf at Bushire between 1826 and 1827. There are letters relating to Shaikh ‘Abd al-Rasūl Khān, the former Governor of Bushire; relations with Persia and the Imam of Muscat; East Africa, including Mombasa and Seeuee [Siyu]; and the Arab littoral of the Persian Gulf.1 file, 9 items (33 folios)Pagination: There is a pagination sequence, which is written in ink, in the top right corners of the rectos and in the top left corners of the versos.Foliation: There is a foliation sequence, which is circled in pencil, in the top right corner of the recto of each folio. The sequence begins on the front cover, on number 1, and ends on the inside of the back cover, on number 33. This is the sequence which has been used by this catalogue to reference items within the volume.
Letter in Arabic from Thuwaini bin Said al-Said, Sultan of Muscat.The letter is most likely written sometime between 1863 and 1865 as Lewis Pelly only commenced his position as Political Resident in the Persian Gulf in mid-1862 and Thuwaini bin Said was killed in February 1866.1 folio
Most of the letters are written by Lieutenant William Bruce, who was the Resident at this time. A handful of letters are written by James Orton, Assistant Surgeon at Bushire, who took temporary charge of the Residency while Bruce was away from Bushire. Subjects relating directly to the Residency include: accounts; stationery; military and marine expenses; and the sending of arms from Bombay to the Court of Persia, via Bushire. Broader themes within the letters include the procurement of sulphur for its use in India, the woollen and silk trades in Persia, and the threat of Āl Qāsimī pirates to British trade in the Persian Gulf.1 volume, 254 items (142 folios)The items are arranged in chronological order, beginning on 1 April 1813 and ending on 28 December 1814.1 volume in one slipcasePagination: This file has an original pagination sequence, which is written in ink, in the top right corner of each recto and the top left corner of each verso. This sequence runs until page 100. A later pagination sequence, which is written in pencil, begins at page 101. This sequence is inconsistent, with many numbers repeated out of sequence.Foliation: The volume has been foliated for referencing purposes by circling numbers in pencil, in the top right corner of each folio. The sequence begins with the first letter, on number 1, and runs through to 138, ending on the inside of the back cover of the volume. This is the sequence that has been used by this catalogue to reference items within the volume.
The volume contains copies of incoming and outgoing correspondence for the Persian Gulf Residency. At the start of 1852 Lieutenant-Colonel Samuel Hennell is Resident, before being superseded in March by Captain Arnold Kemball.The volume includes:Correspondence with the British Envoy at the Court of Persia, Colonel Justin Sheil, reporting on affairs in Persia, on the construction of an upper story for the house of John Malcolm at Bushire, and requesting for information on the history of Bahrain before 1716;Correspondence with the Secretaries to the Government at Bombay regarding affairs in Persia, the Persian Gulf slave trade, commerce, the 1853 occupation of the Island of Carrack [Kharg, Iran] and the conversion of an Armenian to Islam in Basra;Correspondence with the British Envoy at the Court of Persia and the Political Agents at Muscat and Shiraz, in regard to the dispute between the Imam of Muscat and Feerooz Meerza, the Prince Governor of Fars Province, over Bandar-e ʻAbbāsThe volume contains letters in Arabic, one from the Imam of Muscat (folios 57 and 133).1 volume (146 folios)The correspondence is arranged chronologically.Foliation: the foliation is written in pencil, in the top right corner of the recto of each folio. The numbering begins on the first folio with 2, and runs through to the final folio with 146.Pagination: there is also an original pagination sequence, which is not complete; only the pages with writing have been paginated.